Making History! A 2017 Westbound Panama Canal Trip Report **Complete**

[Lesley Wake]

I just have to say I'm loving your report. Your family seems so close! Hope you're able to take advantage of the dance classes on your next PC trip, but I guess you'll need to find a partner!

 

[arielmomma]

I just have to say I'm loving your report. Your family seems so close! Hope you're able to take advantage of the dance classes on your next PC trip, but I guess you'll need to find a partner!

Thank you! We are a close bunch. Having a dance partner was actually a condition of me pitching this trip to James in the first place. Jimmy agreed (with only the slightest bit of encouragement) to be my partner, and Emily said she wanted to fill in, too. We'll see if they stand by their words when we get onboard.

 

[linetbo]

Great report, the Abba group were on our Norway cruise in June.

 

[arielmomma]

Great report, the Abba group were on our Norway cruise in June.

Thank you!

 

[arielmomma]

When we returned to our cabin, we woke Emily with the scent of the breakfast we brought her from Cabanas. When she finished, the weather was so nice we decided to leave the ship for awhile and explore the port.



Welcome to Puerto Vallarta!





Emily liked the sea horse mosaic in the bottom of the pool.



My kids were fascinated by how short these statues were.



On our way to the shopping area, we passed an aviary containing a handful of colorful macaws.









This couple greeted us outside one of the shops. Only a few of the shopkeepers were even mildly pushy. This was refreshing. There was plenty of cute jewelry, clothes, and beaded sculptures to peruse.



About two-thirds of our way through the shops, the heat became uncomfortable, so we headed back to the ship.

 

[arielmomma]

Back onboard, Jimmy scuttled off to The Edge, while James, Emily, and I went to the Buena Vista Theater to watch Born in China.



We all enjoyed the movie. The cinematography was spectacular! It made me want to plan a spontaneous trip to China.

We were all hungry after the movie. It was too late to have a meal in Triton's so we made our way to Cabana's. For those who are curious about what is offered on a typical lunch buffet, I took pictures.

 

[arielmomma]

More pictures from the buffet...

 

[arielmomma]

Now, what we selected for ourselves. Here was James' plate: roast beef, ham, chicken nuggets, cheddar cheese cubes, and bubble gum ice cream. Why wait for dessert?



Emily's plate: Chicken skewers, broccoli, roasted potatoes, ham, and chicken nuggets. As you can see, she really liked the chicken nuggets.



Here's my plate: Some sort of oriental noodles that were not as good as the O'hana-type noodles, penne pasta, macaroni and cheese, an interesting fruit salad, battered cod, an amazing chicken skewer with peanut sauce, boiled cabbage, and steamed cauliflower.



You can tell which items were my favorites by my second plate. The fish was moist, flaky, and not overly greasy. The potatoes, which I'd sampled from Emily's plate, were buttery and well-seasoned. As for the skewer, it was delicious, and to think, I never would have tried it had a CM not encouraged me to do so. He promised I'd love it, and he was right. I have learned to always take the recommendations of the CMs. They have yet to lead me astray.



Onto dessert. Here are Emily's selections.



Here's mine: A fried plantain, rice pudding, raspberry panna cotta, and cheesecake. My favorite was the rice pudding.



I also had a scoop of the pineapple/coconut Haagen Daz. This was my favorite ice cream onboard.



Emily had the strawberry, which was also very good.



This was our view from our table in Cabanas. I wondered what it would have been like to sail on a yacht like that, let alone own it and have the ability to sail away whenever I liked. Oh, to dream!

 

[arielmomma]

After lunch, James and I parted ways. He took a nap, while I took Emily swimming. I sat at a table updating my notes and watching Pixar Shorts on Funnel Vision, while Emily splashed around with her friends.



After a couple hours of swimming, Emily wanted a snack. I couldn't let her eat on her own, so I had one, too.

I had the chicken shawarma. A different CM made it this time with different toppings. It was just as delicious, though.



While Emily had an ice cream cone.



When we got back to the cabin, James and Jimmy were just heading off to a Wii Challenge. We wished them well. It looked like it was just going to be us girls for a little while longer, and Emily was feeling crafty. So, she got cleaned up and we headed to the promenade lounge to make more Mardi Gras masks. Here's Em with today's masterpiece.



While we were in the Promenade Lounge, the ship began to pull away from the port. As we did, we heard that there was a ruckus going on outside. Apparently, a cherry picker that had been cleaning the hull of The Wonder got a little to close to the edge. Whoops!



We returned to the cabin to drop off our masks, and this was waiting for me on the bed. Another nice DCL touch.

 

[arielmomma]

Emily headed off the kids' club, while James and I went to dance class. We met back up with our children for dinner. It was also semi-formal night. Somewhere along the line, we'd all squeezed in the time to change into our finery.

Tonight we were in Animator's Palate with the animation show. We'd had the opportunity to participate in the animation show on the Fantasy, but this was the first time we got to do it on the Wonder. When we arrived at our table, the special drawing placemats and markers were waiting for us. This was Jimmy's drawing. Mine looked like a poorly-drawn Ariel.



Because of the show, there was a limited menu this evening.





We all started with the sampler platter.



Emily had some fruits and veggies.



For her main course, Emily had the rack of lamb.



Jimmy and I had the chicken schnitzel. This was delicious!



James had the beef wellington. This was one of his favorites.

 

[arielmomma]

Come dessert time, we were all still hungry, so we doubled up. I ordered two celebration cakes. Yes, I ate them both.



Guess whose dessert this was?



Jimmy had the celebration cake and a sundae.



Emily had the chocolate decadence and a sundae. They were all lovely.



Finally, it was show time. I took a video of it, but the file is too large for me to upload it here. You'll just have to experience it for yourselves.

 

[arielmomma]

After dinner, the children and adults parted ways, as usual. James and I went to the Walt Disney Theater to see Abba Fab. While they were talented, the music was simply WAY too loud for us.



About halfway through the show, James and I slipped out of the theater and went up to deck 9. James was in the mood for a snack, but there was no food available. Even the pizza place was closed until 9:30p.

Although it was CRAZY WINDY, we stayed on deck to watch the sunset. I was nuts and made my way up to deck 10 forward to try to take a picture of the sunset. You know that scene in the movie Titanic with Jack and Rose at the front of the ship where Rose felt like she was flying? Yeah, well, I get that scene a bit better now. Except, I felt like I might blow away! Good thing I'd eaten so much during this cruise. That extra cushioning kept me firmly planted on the ground.





When we went back inside, I had to take a picture of the stairway leading to Bibbidi Bobbidi Boutique. How cute!



Shortly before 9:30p, James went to Azure to save us seats to see Wayne Cotter's comedy show, while I waited for Pinocchio's Pizzeria to open. I got James his snack and met him in Azure. Wayne's performance was nearly identical to his performance on our last cruise, but we still had a good laugh.



We stuck around for the Cabaret put on by the Wonder's theater performers. We were so glad we did. They were amazing! It gave us a chance to see just how talented these young men and women truly were.



This woman's incredible version of Somewhere Over the Rainbow would have given Judy Garland goosebumps.



We left Azure and returned to Deck 9 to catch the second half of Guardians of the Galaxy on the Funnel Vision.



By the time the movie ended, it was midnight. We met the kids back in the cabin. It was time to say goodnight. Tomorrow would be our last port day of this cruise.





Up Next: Movies and Mardi Gras

 

[Disney4Us&D]

Thank you so much for these trip reports. My family and I will be on the EBPC cruise with you in a few months and this really gives me a perspective of how much we can do with 14 days. I also have to echo the sentiments of others who've thanked you for the food pics. I'm trying to slim down for the cruise and it's easier to forego McDonalds French fries and Poptarts when I see all the incredible food choices I'll have once I'm onboard.

 

[arielmomma]

Thank you so much for these trip reports. My family and I will be on the EBPC cruise with you in a few months and this really gives me a perspective of how much we can do with 14 days. I also have to echo the sentiments of others who've thanked you for the food pics. I'm trying to slim down for the cruise and it's easier to forego McDonalds French fries and Poptarts when I see all the incredible food choices I'll have once I'm onboard.

Thank you for following along! I, too, am working on taking off a few (or more) pounds before the October cruise. Posting all of these pictures is making me excited to have all of the delicious food again. So much better than McD's and Poptarts! Looking forward to splurging keeps my will power up (at least it has so far). It'll be here before we know it. In fact, I just realized that my family will be flying to San Diego exactly 2 months from today. I can't wait! I look forward to seeing you there!

 

[Deb Stoltman]

Whew! I just read all 10 pages of your trip report! Fabulous! I love all your pictures, especially the food porn pics. Sounds like you had the most amazing time ever! I would love to do this itinerary sometime, too. Emily was so cute in her pirate gear. Your whole family was adorable all decked out for Pirate's night! Can't wait to hear about the remainder of your vacation.

 

[arielmomma]

Whew! I just read all 10 pages of your trip report! Fabulous! I love all your pictures, especially the food porn pics. Sounds like you had the most amazing time ever! I would love to do this itinerary sometime, too. Emily was so cute in her pirate gear. Your whole family was adorable all decked out for Pirate's night! Can't wait to hear about the remainder of your vacation.

Thank you for joining in! I'm glad your enjoying my report. It was an incredible vacation. I would recommend this itinerary to anyone. I promise there's more food porn to come! Food is one of the best parts of a DCL vacation.

 

[arielmomma]

Friday, May 5, Cabo San Lucas





This morning, Jimmy and I were the first to wake. We quietly slipped out of the cabin. I let Jimmy choose where we ate breakfast. He chose Triton's.



I started with mango hike and a fruit plate.



Jimmy had the waffle sandwich. He couldn't wait for me to take a picture.



He also ordered the pineapple stack. The server brought the French toast, but forgot the pineapple! Our server promptly corrected the error by bringing a plate of cooked pineapple. It turned out to be a blessing in disguise. Jimmy said he liked it better with the pineapple on the side.



I had the eggs benedict with smoked salmon in place of Canadian bacon. It was as delicious as always.



While we were eating, James stopped by to let us know that he was going to grab breakfast in Cabana's. He really enjoyed the breakfast sandwiches he made off of the buffet. That meant that we only had to order one breakfast to-go. When the pastry server came by, I snagged Emily a chocolate chip muffin. Since he'd come all the way to our table, it would have been wrong for me not to take a coconut-pineapple one for myself, too.



Emily woke when we re-entered the cabin. She was thrilled with the waffle sandwich we brought her to start her day.



While Emily ate, I turned on Good Morning Disney Wonder. Yesterday, a CM filmed James and I doing a silly, little head-twisting routine and told us that we might appear on today's Good Morning Disney Wonder. I had to see if we made the cut. There were no passengers featured on today's episode, so I figured they had changed their minds about what they'd decided to air.

As it turned out, we did appear on Good Morning Disney Wonder, but not until tomorrow! We missed our DCL TV debut. However, several of our friends told us about it. They said they laughed. I hope it was in a good way.

 

[arielmomma]

With everyone fed, James, Jimmy, and Emily got ready to head up to deck 9. Emily swam, while the boys played chess. I had the unfortunate duty of packing. Our glorious vacation would soon come to an end.

I watched Passengers on our cabin TV, while I gathered our belongings. I am always amazed at how much extra "stuff" we manage to accumulate during a cruise. Even with a specified FE suitcase, I always need to play a game of packing Tetris to squeeze everything in.

With a bit of Disney magic, I managed to pack away everything we wouldn't need to get through the next couple of days and joined by family on deck 9. I found Emily in the pool.






While Jimmy finished slaughtering his father at yet another game of chess, I took some pictures of our lovely surroundings.









The kids decided they needed an ice cream break. Today they had mango/pineapple-coconut twist. Yum!



They enjoyed their ice cream while watching the tail end of Bolt on the Funnel Vision.



When the movie ended, Emily and I headed back to the cabin to get cleaned up. Afterward, we grabbed lunch in Cabanas to-go and met the boys in the Buena Vista Theater to catch a movie.

Apparently, I only took a picture of my plates. I had fruit, poutine, roasted potatoes, and sautéed mushrooms (under the chocolate mousse). The chocolate mousse was Emily's.



For dessert, I had cheesecake, a fruit tart, and rice pudding. It was all delicious.

 

[arielmomma]

We made it to the theater just in time to get settled. What did we see?



Sleepless in Seattle



Neither James or I had ever seen this movie before. It was very good. There were a couple parts I wished my children hadn't heard, but fortunately, those lines seemed to have gone over their heads. (Or at least they pretended they did.)

After the movie, the adults and kids parted ways. I wanted to try the mango/pineapple-coconut twist ice cream. I highly recommend it.



James went for a slice of pizza. I decided to try it. I went for a ham/mushroom/blue cheese slice. I didn't care for it. However, I'm no connoisseur of pizza. That's more James' forte.



Instead, I grabbed a tomato/mozzarella/pesto sandwich with melon. This was more up my alley. It hit the spot.

 

[arielmomma]

When we finished our snacks, James and I collected Emily to catch another showing of Moana. Emily simply adored this movie!

After the movie, James and I read on deck 4 until dance class. Today, there were dance classes offered at both 4pm and 5:15pm with only a fifteen minute break in between. Just enough time in between to catch our breath and have a nice visit with Jarrod.

We slipped out of dance class a little early, as usual, but were still a tad late for dinner (again, as usual). Tonight was not a night we wanted to miss. While it was actually Cinco De Mayo, in Tiana's Place we were celebrating Mardi Gras!



Here we are showing off all of the masks we made.















The kids got into the spirit of the occasion with the children's menus.